8 String gauge help :(

[abadonae]

Hey guys,

Basically this is gonna sound so stupid but i was so excited i wasn't really paying attention.
My Agile Intrepid pro 8 got here last week and i love it, its an amazing guitar, i was gonna put some pictures up but i thought loads of people would have anyways, basically though i changed the strings. This involved a packet of dunlop kerry king strings, and rotosound bass strings (for the 60 and 80).
The 80 doesn't fit, the 60 sounds terrible, the other strings have a bad feel to them. Im gutted, its sitting behind me collecting dust because i've made it feel bad to play!!!
NOOOO!!!!
so basically can some1 give me some helpful insight into the types of gauges i should use for this amazing guitar?
And possibly companies to?
Thanks, just in case you didn't know its a 28.625" scale neck. So its a biggun.

cheers!

 

[djohns74]

Plenty of threads on this subject already, unfortunately there's at least as many opinions on the matter as well. My impression is that bass strings aren't a great idea unless you either need the extra length (you don't on the Intrepid) or if you want a ridiculously heavy gauge for the lower strings (80 isn't that bad).

I grabbed a regular set of Ernie Ball 9's (.009-.042) and added to that a .056 and .074, both of which are standard Ernie Ball guitar strings. I tune to standard and it works great, yielding very even tension across all strings and keeping the low F# crisp-sounding.

Of course, not everyone is a fan of Ernie Ball strings, and even I'm at best indifferent on them. But they're readily available in a variety of larger gauges, which is ideal for making up custom 8 string sets. I got mine at JustStrings.com - Strings for guitar, bass, banjo, mandolin, fiddle and other musical instruments by browsing the "Single Strings" section. Mine are Nickel Wound, though you might find other decent options by browsing through the various manufacturers' product lines.

 

[Nightside]

yeah i recommend juststrings.com get daddario singles in whatever gauges you like. i personally on mine always got a regular 9-46 and then a 60 and 80. plus the 60 and 80 that they have use guitar size ball ends that fit into the ferrules.

 

[AgileLefty]

i use the d'addario 7 string set with the .059 on the bottom, and a single d'addario .074 guitar string. all from juststrings.com


oh, and pics of the Intrepid please


ahhh. i'm subscribed to you on youtube and i see you just uploaded a vid of the Intrepid lefty. it isn't done processesing yet though so i can't see it. did you see the 2 vids i did of my Intrepid Pro? kinda shitty quality (playing and video) but at least you can see another lefty slinging this beast of a guitar.

 

[abadonae]

ha ha i was watching that video just before i got onto here to check this, yea man i was so torn between the bloodburst or natural one, i went bloodburst in the end but it was a hard choice.
That vid was a couple of days ago before i cut the strings off, these 'things' i've got on there now are horrible, well great strings but horrible for this guitar.
I love the thing though, its an absolute beast!!!!

 

[MF_Kitten]

d´addario .46-.09, plus a .52 and a .70, or maybe a .75 instead (this is a particularly nice gauge for that scale), and you´ll be happy as fish

 

[Adriatic]

i use the d'addario 7 string set with the .059 on the bottom, and a single d'addario .074 guitar string. all from juststrings.com

yeah i use a .74 too... just the right tension for me.. i actually alternate strings.. i love using a .74 bass string for playing live as the tone is quite warmer than using a .74 d'addario nw.. which are very bright (i use for recording)..
also use regular light 7 string sets... EXL 110-7

 

[built4sin]

i've been using d'addario jazz lite chrome flat wounds .11-.65 then the same in an .80. i've been using flat wounds on my guitars for a few years, i just really like the sound and feel of them

 

[Alekke]

Will D'Addario light 7-string 009-054 plus 070 for the 8th string be enough tension for my guitar in progress with 28,625" scale (F tuning) ?

I'm pretty satisfied with my current tension which is medium D'Addario 010-059 for the 26,5" scale Blackjack c-7 (Bb tuning).

 

[leandroab]

I think that, by know, the big string companies should have 8-string sets available on the market... I don't think it would be too much of a struggle for big companies like D'Addario to add 1 string to a 7 string package and call it "Regular lights 8-string"

 

[amassivetree]

Will D'Addario light 7-string 009-054 plus 070 for the 8th string be enough tension for my guitar in progress with 28,625" scale (F tuning) ?

I'm pretty satisfied with my current tension which is medium D'Addario 010-059 for the 26,5" scale Blackjack c-7 (Bb tuning).

I'm using the D'Addario light 7 set with a 0.072 added on the low F#, and it sounds great, especially improving on the low end over the stock strings, now its clear and tight (no buzz). Before I was playing 0.10-0.46 (Ernie Ball slinky) in standard turning on 25.5" : the Intrepid feels similar, but a little tighter.